A Naturalist’s Book of Wildflowers by Laura Martin

A Naturalist's Book of Wildflowers by Laura Martin 

This book came out in 2021, and the subtitle is Celebrating 85 Native Plants in North America.

Great topic.

Before I tell you about this book, I want to highlight Laura's incredible talent.

She got her degree in botany from the University of Georgia and has worked as a naturalist at Georgia's Callaway Gardens. She even has a botanical art and illustration certificate from the New York Botanical Gardens. And get this—she's published 25 books.

When you see the cover of Laura's book, it's all the more remarkable when you realize that she did all the illustrations herself. Laura dedicated this book to her grandchildren, and I wanted to share with you what she wrote in the introduction because it gives us a little insight into Laura as a person.

She writes.

I have spent my entire life loving wildflowers. I grew up in the woods on the outskirts of the city and because my mother was a wildflower enthusiast, I became one too.

So we have another excellent example of the love of flowers, the love of gardening, being passed down from generation to generation.

And then Laura continues.

I eventually acquired a bachelor's degree in botany and then a certification in botanical illustration. And the result is a naturalist book of wildflowers, celebrating 85 native plants of North America.

And the celebration features scientific text, interesting folklore, detailed botanical drawings and whimsical sketches I have learned to look at plants from many different angles. And I'm happy to share this perspective with you.

As a gardener, I know you will love Laura's book, but even if you aren't into gardening, don't be bashful about cracking open this book.

Laura introduces us to these plants in a very, very friendly fashion. She's got one little paragraph called just a little botany, and she writes,

Although it's not essential to know botany to appreciate wildflowers, it might make it a little more fun and interesting. And botany is just the study of plants. 

It's that gentle, conversational tone that I think you're really going to like in Laura's book. There's one other aspect that I want to share with you about this book. Laura adds all these little images - these little doodles - in the margins.

Laura also includes these incredible drawings of her subjects. She has the plant's name and, underneath, the Latin name for the plant in script font. While the drawing of the plant is beautiful, of course, the text she puts around the plant and the way she places this information make these drawings extra unique.

For instance, when she talks about the Bellwort at the top, she says it's 12 to 20 inches high in a script font, making you feel like you're looking at somebody's scrapbook. These little snippets are marvelous and full of information and Laura's gentle perspective, which you won't find in many other books.

The publisher writes,

A charmingly illustrated, keepsake and guide to native wild plants of North America.

This book is truly a delight.

It's 288 pages of North American wildflowers in their myriad colors. By the way, Laura organized this book by plant color, which is helpful.

So, if you have a blue or pink garden, you'll be able to find the wildflowers of that color and then look up the ones you want to grow in your garden.

You can get a copy of A Naturalist's Book of Wildflowers by Laura Martin and support the show using the Amazon link in today's show notes for around $8.